Friday, April 4, 2014

Vision We've Lost

Woke up this morning to a bit of an "April's Fools" joke...fresh snow. Nearly all previous accumulations had been melted by recent rains so I, like most everyone else, was looking forward to some routine trail running.

This didn't stop me from going out on the Lime Creek trails and I was rewarded with a rather pleasant loop on a soft layer of very runnable snow. Seth Bell had been out snowbiking on the same trails earlier in the morning (as evidenced by tracks). Also listened to a couple podcasts and that resulted in another round of nostalgia for me. Mentions of running without equipment that we commonly have available today...like technical running shoes, water bottles or lightweight headlamps.

I recalled signing up for cross country in high school. We were issued a pair of training flats that were so simple by today's standards, although some of today's "minimalist" shoes appear to be regressing to the same look.

around 1968 vintage converse runners similar to my 1st pair

As I continued to run today, thinking about equipment changes and a bit of return to older ways, I remembered a favorite song from some years ago by Dan Fogelberg called "The Wild Places." This includes the lines: So many mountains before us; So many rivers to cross; Where is the wisdom to bring back; the vision we've lost.

7 miles today after, basically a day off with a shopping quick trip to Minneapolis yesterday. We drove back before the rain changed to snow. But I was able to get restocked with coconut oil and a couple of different beers!